A.

Background of the Problem

Majority of studies evaluating possible health effects of solid wastes have

revealed that most of the items used at school such as cleaning materials and school

supplies pose certain types of health risk and hazard. These studies reveal that some

ingredients of these items may cause immediate or acute hazards such as skin or

respiratory irritation, watery eyes or chemical burns while others are associated with

long-term or chronic harmful health effects such as cancer. Commonly-used products can

pollute the air, water, and soil, and recombine to form other even more dangerous

compounds. Persistent substances, such as mercury, can accumulate in surrounding

plants, fruits, vegetables, and raised livestock. Most wastes are eventually disposed in

landfills or incinerated, dumped directly on the ground, or poured down drains (entering

septic systems and sewers), or composted. The outcome of improper use and handling of

waste is the potential contamination of surface water, groundwater, and air making people

vulnerable to exposure. Issues of attitudes and perceptions appear to affect both

inhabitants and authorities regarding solid waste management in different schools

nowadays.

Issues includes the opinions of students, faculties and staffs on responsibilities

for ensuring clean surroundings, education regarding the proper disposal of solid wastes,

and children’s involvement in solid waste management.

Furthermore, this policy brief emphasizes the prior efforts inorder to resolve the

problem such as: 1. The need for waste minimization, particularly relevant for hazardous

waste; 2. The primacy of safety in the design, operation and improvement of facilities and

processes for the management of solid wastes; and 3. the public school's responsibilities
in establishing proper management mechanisms for solid wastes as well as developing

and executing education and awareness campaigns to highlight the dangers of improper

handling, storage, and disposal of solidwastes at the public schools.

This high generation of waste tells us how source reduction as a waste

management method is important. Gourlay (1992) argued that by focusing on the

production process itself, examining where wastes are generated, and exploring how they

can be reduced, even simple measures, such as separating wastes so that they can be

reused more easily, using different raw materials or replacing non-biodegradable products

with biodegradable ones, can help achieve large waste reduction results. He also claimed

that the greater part of present waste arises not because the producer does not want it, but

he fails to use it, or at least use it in such quantities that waste is inevitable. This argument

places emphasis on recycling and conversion of waste as important solid waste

management practices.

The significance of this is that it would help to ascertain the attitudes and

perceptions of people towards solid waste management, assess solid waste management

at public schools in handling solid waste in the study area, make recommendations for

improving solid waste management in the study and to educate students in the public

schools as well. In general this would be of great help to the students, faculty, staffs, and

the entirety of school.

The rapid population growth aggravates the continuous increase in the amount

of solid waste generated per day. In Asia alone the waste generation rate is predicted to

increase from about 760,000 tons per day to about 1.8 tons per day by 2015 (IBRD,

1999). Furthermore, the worsening condition of solid waste creates environmental and
health problems. Garbage is considered "a third pollution inextricable interlocked with air

and water pollution creating environmental hazards." If the issue on the improper

disposal of solid wastes would be left alone, it would certainly result to the clogging of

drains, creating stagnant water for insect breeding, and causing floods during rainy

seasons especially in urban areas. Nonetheless, it would contribute to air, water, and soil

pollution. Also, Insect and rodent vectors can also spread diseases such as cholera, and

dengue fever due to improper waste disposal.

The Philippines' population exhibited a huge increase from 27 million in 1960s

to 84.6 million in 2006 (Espaldon and Baltazar, 2004). The current annual population

growth rate is 1.8% and considering the modern lifestyle, one person is estimated to

generate about half a kilo per day (Philippines-Canada LGSP 2003). In response to the

critical condition of solid waste management problem and the threat it poses to the

environment and human health, the Philippine government enacted the Republic Act

9003. The law declares that the policy of the state is to "adopt a systematic,

comprehensive and ecological solid waste management." However, many publics schools

have difficulties in complying with the rules and regulations. Nonetheless, there are some

scholls that despite these hurdles were able to implement solid waste management

programs successfully. Thus, the proper solid waste management is really one of the huge

problems in the country as it is visible and many are sufferring from the effects it poses to

the humans as well as to the nature.